Archaeological Site of Carthage

Carthage, Tunis Governorate, Tunisia

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The Archaeological Site of Carthage, in the city of Carthage within the Tunis Governorate of Tunisia, is a large, UNESCO‑listed ruin zone that preserves the remains of one of antiquity’s most powerful Mediterranean cities.

Founded by Phoenician‑origin settlers from Tyre around the 9th century BCE on a hill overlooking the Gulf of Tunis, Carthage grew into a major maritime and trading empire before being destroyed by Rome in 146 BCE and later rebuilt as a Roman provincial capital.

The site today is scattered across modern‑day Carthage and includes key components such as Byrsa Hill, the Punic ports, the Tophet sanctuary, necropolises, villas, a Roman theatre, an amphitheatre, a circus, basilicas, the vast Antonine Baths, and the Malaga cistern system. 

Covering nearly 500 hectares, the area bears witness to successive Phoenico‑Punic, Roman, Vandal, paleochristian, and early Arab layers, and remains a central place for understanding Mediterranean cultural exchange and the dramatic history of Carthage’s rise and fall.